This post is one big preparation for another post I’m working on. I want to make a list of all the books we all agree every online marketer should read. So please, let me hear your suggestions!
Which books should every online marketer read?
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As others will suggest the SEO books, let me recommend ‘The Long Tail’ by Chris Anderson. Hope you all agree with the suggestion. Greets from Switzerland, Patrick
Crossing the Chasm is one I highly recommend. It is more of a general technology marketing book, and not just geared to online marketing. However, this book provides some very insightful theories on how to market to your tech audience, and how to “cross the chasm” that is the jump from tech to mainstream.
Overstating the obvious: Seobook by Aaron Wall and yes Patrick, the Long Tail should also be on this list. A very good book indeed!
Don’t make me think, by Steve Krug is a must. Great basics on web site usability.
The Copywriters Handbook, Lucky or Smart, The Tipping Point, The Ideavirus .. off the top of my head.
Blink & The Tipping Point – Malcolm Gladwell
ADs to Icons – Paul Springer
Naked Conversations – Scoble
Speed of Trust – Stephen Covey
Shari Thurow’s Book
Mike Grehan’s Book
Advanced Web Metrics – Brian Clifton
Design of Everyday Things – Donald A Norman
I also vore for The Long Tail and Don’t make me think. I also believe that “Call to Action” belongs to the list.
/Jesper
Well I’ve read the long tail book, web analaytics: an hour a day, google search book.
All pretty good.
Star Wars
And no, I’m not trying to be funny. Star Wars is a a great example of doing something no one has ever seen before. This is important for any marketer to know if they want to get ahead of the competition.
I like Biz Blog Marketing, by Doug Williams.
Wikinomics by Don Tapscott an Anthony D. Williams is my chicken soup for the soul.
Biz Blog Marketing by Doug Williams is my blogging bible.
A second vote for ‘Don’t make me think’ by Krug!
I’d go for these books:
The Cluetrain Manifesto
The Long Tail
Don’t make me think
Purple Cow
Call to Action
These are my bibles:
SEObook by Aaron Wall (!!!)
Actionable Web Analytics by Jason Burby and Shane Atchison
Web Analytics an Hour a Day by Avinash Kaushik
Don’t Make Me Think by Steve Krug
Search Engine Optimization with PHP by Jaimie Sirovich and Cristian Darie
I like this one Engine Marketing Inc de Mike Moran
Marketing:
Made to Stick – Chip & Dan Heath
The Big Red Fez – Seth Godin. (Also, All Marketeers are Liars)
The Tipping Point – Malcolm Gladwell
The Adweek Copywritting Handbook
Duct Tape Marketing – John Jantsch
Online:
Inside the spam cartel “Spammer X”
Call to Action – Bryan & Jeffrey Eisenberg
I thought the Long Tail as a book overly long, whilst the article itself is worth reading. It can be summarised as “have a lot of content, rank / sell a lot of weird one-off stuff.”
SEO Book of course and I thought SEO an Hour a Day, by Grappone and Couzin was good for giving clients/colleagues a better understanding.
SEO with PHP – Sirovich and Darie
I could never finish Avinash’s book but enjoy the blog.
Winning Results with Google AdWords by Andrew Goodman is old now but had some good content, and I think there’s a new version coming out
At the moment I’m not ready, but I think it’s good: Landing Page Optimization by Tim Ash and for German’s: Guerilla Marketing – Ideen schlagen Budget by Thomas Patalas.
Lots of great (online) marketing titles already mentioned here!
One of my favourites:
The Search: How Google and Its Rivals Rewrote the Rules of Business and Transformed Our Culture
by John Battelle
Moneyball: The Art of Winning and Unfair Game by Michael Lewis
Biz Blog Marketing by Doug Williams.
SEObook by Aaron Wall
The Super Affiliate Handbook by Rosalind Gardner
Just spotted a post at SEJ that list great books for the SEM in all of us:
http://www.searchenginejournal.com/six-interesting-printed-books-the-ones-made-of-paper-not-pdf-ebooks/6674/
If you don’t already own SEOBook, you can’t buy it anymore. Aaron now just sells his “training program” which is basically a site subrscription. Should a book that’s no longer available be on the list?
And I second “All Marketers Are Liars” by Seth Godin.
I’m finding “The New Rules of Marketing and PR” by David Meerman Scott a surprisingly good read and I vote for “Tested Advertising Methods” by John Caples
My vote is also for ‘The Search’ by John Battelle. And off course, although only in Dutch available, a vote for the SEO book of SEOGuru.nl.
I agree on most of the ealier contributions but.. I miss this really good book called The Blue Ocean Strategy on alternative marketing strategies. A real eye-opener!
I second ‘Search Engine Marketing Inc.’ by Mike Moran and Bill Hunt
Required reading should be Perry Marshals Definitive Guide to Google Adwords. It is much more than just an Adwords book.
- The Long Tale
- Naked conversations
- Web Analytics: An hour a day
- The Search (if u have a free time to read about google)
btw, nice topic, a liked every comment, added some book to my amazon wishlist.
greets from latvia :)
Can’t wait for the list Joost, you are a great resource, really helping us SEO beginners. I appreciate all the help. Thanks. Gus.
- Ambient Findability: by Peter Morville
- Competing on Analytics: The New Science of Winning by Thomas H. Davenport (Author), Jeanne G. Harris (Author)
- Actionable Web Analytics by Jason Burby and Shane Atchison
- Web Analytics an Hour a Day by Avinash Kaushik
- The User Is Always Right: A Practical Guide to Creating and Using Personas for the Web by Steve Mulder and Ziv Yaar
- Fooled by Randomness
- Freakonomics
Hi,
I have Call to Action. I am still reading it, but will let you know what I think.
Search Enginge Optimization from Kristopher B. Jones